Slim Chances For Research In Motion Ltd (BBRY)’s Rebound

Research In Motion Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) (TSE:BB) is losing ground in the United States, according to an industry report from Kantar Worldpanel. BlackBerry, once the dominant player in the segment, is almost washed away from the United States market.

Declining market share

Research In Motion Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) (TSE:BB) was once the most dominant phone maker holding more than 50 percent of the total market, but over the three months ending May 2012, the Waterloo, Ontario based company commanded a meager 4.6 percent. The report further says that the market share of BlackBerry has declined to 0.7 percent over the three months ending May 2013.

BBRY should focus on other segments

The phone maker is looking to dominate the smartphone market once again with its latest BB10 devices running on OS10. BlackBerry launched BBZ10 and BB Q10 as the first two phones running on OS10. Even though both phones have somewhat revived the diminishing sales, they have not done enough to boost BlackBerry in the smartphone market.

Research In Motion Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) (TSE:BB) is not, however, only a phone maker. It also provides various enterprise solutions to clients along with communication infrastructure services to its business customers. While other companies are just starting to step in these areas, BlackBerry is already a dominant player.

Top level executives at BlackBerry should try to enhance its profitable business segments with its resources rather than trying to revive a declining segment, says a report from Forbes by Todd Ganos.

Z10 at just $49

Research In Motion Ltd (NASDAQ:BBRY) (TSE:BB), which recently got approval from the shareholders to change its name from RIM to BlackBerry officially, might see a further stoop in its shares as BlackBerry Z10 is available for as low as $49 on sites like Amazon.com, Inc.(NASDAQ:AMZN).

Users can get BlackBerry Z10 by paying just $99 instead of $199 at AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) and Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ). The phone is also available at Best Buy Co., Inc. (NYSE:BBY) or Amazon by paying just $49. One of the BlackBerry representatives said that the availability of Z10 at a lower price is very normal.

“Now is the right time to adjust the price,” said an unnamed spokesperson. “It’s part of life cycle management to tier the pricing for current devices to make room for the next ones.”

Prior to the representative’s cold response, Thorsten Heins said in the shareholders meeting last week that the launch of BlackBerry Z10 was perfect when he was asked by a shareholder whether the launch of the phone was a bit of a disaster.

Author: Aman JainAman is MBA (Finance) with an experience on both Marketing and Finance side. He has worked as a Risk Analyst for AIR Worldwide, and is currently leading VeRa FinServ, a Financial Research firm. Favorite pastimes include watching science fiction movies, reviewing tech gadgets, playing PC games and cricket. - Email him at amanjain@valuewalk.com